WHAT means this wat'ry canopy 'bout thy bed, These streaming vapours o'er thy sinful head? Are they thy tears? Alas, in vain they're spilt, 'Tis now too late to wash away thy guilt. Thou still art bloody Richard, and 'tis much The water should not from thy very touch Turn quite Egyptian, and the scaly fry Fear to be kill'd, and so thy carcase fly. Bathe, bathe thy fill, and take thy pleasure now In this cold bed; yet, guilty Richard, know, Judgment must come, and water then would be A heaven to thee midst hellish misery. | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...THE WIFE A-LOST by WILLIAM BARNES THE SUICIDE by EDNA ST. VINCENT MILLAY SONNET: 3 by WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE WITH A GUITAR, TO JANE by PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY OUR BROTHER'S KEEPER by W. H. ANDERSON |